According to a report from UCLA’s William Institute School of Law: the wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation pushed by Republicans and right-wing extremist groups has had a colossal impact on transgender and non-binary youth. Right-wing media spent 2023 accelerating their culture war campaign in opposition to the very existence of transgender and non-binary people. In March of last year, mainstream conservatives, sharing a stage with Donald Trump himself, openly called for transgender and non-binary existence to be “eradicated” from the country. Anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes, bomb threats, and rallies have continually spiked in this era of Republican-led extremist vitriol against transgender and non-binary people. This eliminationist hate has manifested itself into state laws passing in primarily Republican-led areas of the nation: ensuring that anti-LGBTQ+ bigotry is given institutional power against the youth. For these reasons and more, Human Rights Watch made history in announcing a national state of emergency for LGBTQ+ people in the United States.
This UCLA report provides a comprehensive debrief on the damage inflicted on transgender and non-binary youth. Here are the key findings as listed in the report:
105,200 transgender youth (about one-third of transgender youth in the U.S.) live in states that ban access to gender-affirming care.
92,700 transgender youth ages 13-17 live in states that passed laws banning access to gender-affirming care in 2023.
26,000 transgender youth live in states with gender-affirming care bans that cannot currently be enforced due to court orders.
101,500 transgender youth-about one-third of transgender youth in the U.S.- live in states. that restrict access to school sports for transgender students
14,200 transgender youth ages 13-17 live in states that passed laws restricting access to school sports for transgender students in 2023.
11,100 transgender youth live in four states with sports participation bans that cannot currently be enforced due to court orders.
32,700 transgender youth live in states that ban transgender students from using school bathrooms and other facilities that align with their gender identity.
23,600 transgender youth ages 13-17 live in states that passed laws banning transgender students from using school bathrooms and other facilities that align with their gender identity in 2023.
According to the Trevor Project: 45% of LGBTQ+ youth seriously considered suicide last year and 20% of transgender and non-binary youth attempted suicide last year. The same report notes that support from family members was proven to significantly reduce the risks of suicide amongst LGBTQ+ youth. The stakes are high, and lives are already being lost due to the anti-LGBTQ+ crusade from the United State’s right-wing ecosystem.
Especially when you consider how right-wing activists and extremists openly call for transgender and non-binary youth to hang themselves during violent school board demonstrations.